LMS for Short-Course NQF Credits

Impact of The B-BBEE Skills Development Code on Short-Courses?

At present the biggest driver of corporate training demand is the new B-BBEE Code of Conduct. It comes with heavy penalties (40% of target) and ambitious targets (6% of wage bill).

Short courses fall in the B-BBEE Skills Category E. The code requirements are that 85% of the training must be credit bearing. Credit bearing training needs to follow the NQF outcomes based workplace format.

How Does Fusion LMS Increase Your B-BBEE Points on a Classroom Format Short-Course?

B-BBEE codes for Skills Category E require unit standard credit bearing courses. SAQA requires that between 70%-90% of the notional training hours of a credit bearing course to be workplace assignment based; outside and away from the classroom.

Fusion LMS is the ideal instrument for workplace assignment support for classroom training. It manages workplace assignments which take place outside of the classroom and places it in control of the trainer.  This LMS can account for an additional 70-90 notional hours for every 10 credits and so triple your B-BBEE score.

Fusion LMS allows for less learner time away from work and more workplace based B-BBEE points.
Furthermore Fusion LMS automates the development of the Learner Portfolio of evidence and also links notional hour learner records attached to credits to costs for B-BBEE purposes.

How Many B-BBEE Points Do You Earn per Credit?

No it doesn’t work like that. B-BBEE points for training is based on rand value spend and not by the number of credits or NQF level. In fact, although your course must be accredited to earn points, you don’t need to get the actual credits to earn B-BBEE points.

However, you are rewarded points for spend on each legitimate step of the credit bearing process. B-BBEE verification agencies require only that you provide proof of spend against learner records which links notional hours to registered unit standard training and costs.

Each step in the Credit-Bearing process represents a notional billable opportunity which can be harvested for B-BBEE. Classroom, workplace assignments, leaner portfolio of evidence, Learning Management System Assessor and Moderator fees.

Credits equate billable notional hours. 10 Credits = 100 billable hours, the costs of which can be converted into B-BBEE points. 70 hours in each 100 can be earned on LMS support costs for workplace assignments against 10 hours for course instruction.

By investing in on LMS workplace activity and online support, you reduce classroom time 3 fold for the same B-BBEE score spend. That is less time away for work that adds up to quite a benefit with larger numbers of employees.

Fusion LMS also helps focus exclusively on BEE Delegates to Multiply Points Exponentially, without controversy. Unfortunately racially mixed classrooms dilute your B-BBEE points since only portion of the total costs can be allocated to B-BBEE. In a scenario of two out of ten BEE delegates attending a mixed classroom course, only 20% of the costs can be allocated to your score.

This would mean spending five times as much to achieve the same result and this not economically viable at 6% of wage bill.

Supporting your classroom training with a NQF COMPLIANT LMS solves this problem without attracting attention to the inherent race related controversy.

Fusion accomplishes this by isolating unit standards and the learner records of BEE employees so that a 100% of the costs can legitimately be allocated to B-BBEE points for special skills support.This multiplies your score exponentially.

Let’s not just throw Money and Training Days at B-BBEE. For the best results, we recommend that you use NQF Compliant Learning Management Systems Technology to enable to harvest all the B-BBEE points opportunities of the credit bearing process.

COMPANY TRAINERS – How can Fusion LMS Make Your Company Specific Courses B-BBEE Compliant?

Most company specific courses such as product training cannot be aligned to the specific objectives of a unit standard. Either the unit standard does not exist or the specific outcomes are not relevant.

If your course qualifies for CPD points it will allow you to earn B-BBEE points.

Otherwise SAQA recommends that you blend your company specific short course with an elective unit standard which adds value but does not detract from your main course objective.

A further B-BBEE requirement is that 85% of the skills development expenditure must be outsourced. But it is probably not ideal to rely on external training providers to train your company confidential courses.

So instead we recommend that you that you augment your classroom courses with elective unit standard components which are hosted online on a LMS System which is NQF configured and password protected such as Fusion LMS.

TRAINING SERVICE PROVIDERS – How Can Fusion LMS Make Your Non Credit Bearing Courses B-BBEE Compliant?

Although credit bearing training is required for B-BBEE sometimes it is unsuitable to simply substitute a non credit bearing course with a unit standard registered credit bearing course.

Let’s explain.
Non Accredited Short Course Objectives
For corporates short course objectives are mostly for immediate performance improvement in a specific area. So it’s content intensive training to produce immediate performance results; not for a few credits towards a qualification.

Credit Bearing Short Courses Objectives
Credit bearing short courses address the objectives of a segment of a qualification (a unit standard) and not company specific performance objectives. They are inherently less content intensive but require a bigger commitment in time to workplace assignments.

Match and Switch to Unit Standards
If the objectives of a performance based short course can be matched to a unit standard, then you can either prepare your existing course for registration or a buy a registration ready course on the market.

Blending Unit Standards
If it is not suitable to switch your course to unit standards, SAQA recommends that you blend the non credit bearing short course with a unit standard component. We recommend that you run the unit standard component online on a LMS System that is NQF configured such as Fusion LMS.

Focusing to multiply points exponentially.
Fusion LMS also helps focus exclusively on BEE Delegates to Multiply Points Exponentially, without controversy. Unfortunately racially mixed classrooms dilute your B-BBEE points since only portion of the total costs can be allocated to B-BBEE.

In a scenario of two out of ten BEE delegates attending a mixed classroom course, only 20% of the costs can be allocated to your score.

This would mean spending five times as much to achieve the same result and this not economically viable at 6% of wage bill.

Supporting your classroom training with a NQF COMPLIANT LMS solves this problem without attracting attention to the inherent race related controversy.

Fusion accomplishes this by isolating unit standards and the learner records of BEE employees so that a 100% of the costs can legitimately be allocated to B-BBEE points for special skills support. This multiplies your score exponentially.

Competitive Advantage
SAQA’s website shows that a large number of training service providers are registered for the same qualification and or unit standards. So a great many training providers essentially offer the same course.
Fusion LMS helps these training providers triple the B-BBEE points of their clients in a much shorter space of time. It also makes the training experience much more memorable for learners, usually leading to repeat business